Room 302, 49 Beika 3-Chome.
Nakano, dressed in pajamas, hummed a cheerful tune as he stood before the bathroom mirror. Stroking the stubble on his chin, he grinned at his reflection.
After washing up and fixing his appearance, he opened the closet and took out the black outdoor jacket inside. He stuffed all of his tools into a sports shoulder bag in one go. Tonight, he would once again become the hunter and go capture his beloved prey.
Time was tight, so Nakano decided to target the little girl living upstairs in Room 401. His hoarse voice lacked any emotion, sounding as though he were mechanically reading from a script.
"Why does a perfectly good girl have to learn tap dancing? I already said she's disturbing the neighbors but she just keeps annoying me… Ah… I guess you'll just have to become my trophy."
His triangular eyes drifted toward the heads hanging on the wall, each tightly wrapped in layers of plastic wrap. Covering his mouth, he let out several sinister giggles before picking up a nearly empty bottle of perfume and spraying the heads several times.
Once he confirmed no odor would leak out, he clapped his hands in satisfaction like a child watching something amusing.
Ding-dong.
The doorbell rang.
Nakano looked toward the entrance warily. Who would come looking for him at a time like this? Could it be the package he ordered online arriving?
Instead of answering immediately, he first concealed the wall containing his trophies. It was a secret room he had specially built.
"Keisuke Nakano-san, are you home? There's a package here that requires your signature!"
"Coming, coming! Stop rushing me!"
Nakano unlocked the two security locks and reached out to accept the package, only for a massive fist to slam directly into his already unimpressive nose bridge.
Before he could even see who had knocked him out, he collapsed flat onto the floor.
Standing outside the apartment, Ritsu shook out his right hand, clad in a black leather glove. Squatting down, he searched Nakano's pockets for his phone.
Then, after making sure nobody was around, he hoisted the unconscious man over his shoulder and carried him to the trunk of the car.
To ensure he couldn't escape, Ritsu made use of the neatly prepared criminal tools Nakano himself had packed; tape over the mouth, rope binding the wrists and ankles.
In this line of work, Ritsu was clearly the more skilled professional.
Once everything was finished, he inserted the keys into the silver BMW and drove toward the outskirts.
He didn't forget to remove the SIM card from Nakano's phone and toss it away after driving through two intersections. That way, even if the police traced the signal, all they'd find would be the discarded SIM card.
After leaving the city and arriving at the forest outskirts where the bodies had been discovered, Ritsu finally parked in a concealed spot.
Opening the trunk, he looked down at the still unconscious Nakano and muttered in confusion, "Is his physical condition really this weak? It was only one punch, and he's been out this long."
The moment he finished speaking, his phone rang with a pleasant melody.
As expected, it was Hayasaka calling.
The moment he answered, her anxious voice exploded through the line.
"Onizawa, where the hell did you go?! We just got to the scene, but that bastard Nakano already pulled out his SIM card and tossed it away! He's realized the police are tracking him!"
Ritsu removed his mask and baseball cap, feigning surprise.
"So we underestimated his capabilities, huh? I got hungry, so I went nearby to grab something to eat."
"So what do we do next? According to your deduction, he'll make a move tonight, right?"
"No need to worry. He's probably hiding in some dark corner right now, trying to disappear from Tokyo and live under a false identity." Leaning casually against the car, Ritsu chuckled softly.
"Keep monitoring airports, harbors, and train stations. The moment he appears, arrest him immediately."
"Understood!"
Seeing that Hayasaka still hadn't hung up, Ritsu asked curiously, "Why aren't you ending the call?"
"You really don't need me to come pick you up?"
"Heh, no need. I was planning to head home and rest anyway. I'm not feeling very well."
"Alright then. Leave things here to us."
The call ended.
Stretching lazily, Ritsu glanced up at the darkening sky. Once this guy woke up, it would be time to begin.
Although he couldn't kill him… he absolutely had to make him experience what it felt like to become the prey.
'Right, Mr. Hunter Keisuke Nakano?'
...
Heavy darkness blanketed the entire forest.
The night wind swept through the trees, causing the shadows to rustle ominously and filling the surroundings with a chilling atmosphere.
Curled up inside the trunk, Nakano slowly opened his eyes. Before he could even figure out where he was, the icy night wind made him shiver violently.
That was when he realized he was wearing nothing but his underwear.
'I'm in a car trunk? Wait… this place isn't—!'
"Oh? Looks like Sleeping Beauty finally woke up."
Nakano raised his head and saw a tall man in a black baseball cap walking toward him. Narrowing his eyes, he tried to make out the man's face, only to realize it was completely hidden behind a black mask.
"Mmph! Mmph mmph!"
Seeing him struggle emotionally, Ritsu roughly tore the tape from his mouth and spoke in a lazy tone.
"What? Planning to beg for mercy? I suppose I can hear you out."
"I—I know I was wrong! Don't kill me! Please don't kill me! I'll turn myself in, I swear!!!"
Warm liquid slowly trickled down his legs, and the sour smell of urine made Ritsu frown.
This guy's mental fortitude was unbelievably pathetic. The moment he became the prey, he pissed himself before the game had even begun. And someone like this had the nerve to call himself a hunter?
Ritsu took out a knife and cut the ropes binding Nakano's hands and feet. Then he picked up the hunting rifle Nakano had prepared, loaded it, and aimed.
That only made the man before him even more pitiful, crying so hard that snot and tears covered his face.
"I-I-I… don't, don't kill me! Please! I'll do anything you want!!"
"You said that yourself."
"Yes! I said it! Please don't shoot, I'll do anything!"
Ritsu rolled his neck, excitement clear in his voice. "Good. Then let's play a hunting game."
"You're the prey, and I'm the hunter. I'll give you enough time to run."
Nakano froze in place.
That sentence was far too familiar. It was exactly what he had once said to his own victims.
"Now then, the countdown begins. Ten… nine…"
Snapping back to his senses, Nakano stumbled out of the trunk and sprinted deeper into the forest.
He ignored the pain tearing at his feet.
Ignored the freezing night wind.
All he wanted was to escape the hunter's range.
He wanted to live—
"Five… four…"
Ritsu's crimson eyes were as deep and cold as an abyss.
Resting the rifle on his shoulder, he watched the pathetic figure fleeing in terror and slowly curled his thin lips upward before softly uttering his syllables.
"Zero."
"The game has begun."
He advanced without the slightest hurry, because he already knew the prey couldn't escape.
And sure enough, thanks to the night vision function in his glasses, he could clearly see the prey's legs giving out as he crashed to the ground in panic.
The former hunter now looked just like the prey who had once died at his hands.
Collapsed on the dirt.
Struggling desperately to crawl away.
Only to discover that a new hunter stood before him, gripping the rifle tightly and aiming straight at him.
The pitch-black muzzle resembled the fangs of a demon from the abyss, hungrily staring at his life.
"Spare me! Please! I'm begging you! I don't want to die!"
Nakano knelt pitifully on the ground, kowtowing over and over. Blood and mud smeared across his once-clean face as his entire body shook uncontrollably.
Whether from cold or terror, even he no longer knew.
"How does it feel to become the prey?"
"Please, I don't want to die! I really know I was wrong now—!"
Ritsu suddenly jammed the rifle barrel against Nakano's throat and repeated in a sinister tone, "How does it feel to become the prey?"
Nakano was too terrified to answer.
He feared that one wrong response would make the other man pull the trigger without hesitation. Fear completely consumed his mind. His trembling lips couldn't even piece together a complete sentence.
Ritsu's eyes gradually turned cold.
The hunting game was over.
"Drive yourself to the police station and turn yourself in. I'll be watching you the whole time."
"And if you try to fool me… I'll make you wish you were dead."
The moment he realized he wouldn't die, that he still had a chance to live, Nakano slammed his forehead against the ground several more times before staggering toward the car.
Every few steps, he looked back in terror.
Afraid the hunter might change his mind.
----
More than half an hour later, a young man covered in mud and blood, his mental state completely shattered, appeared at the Metropolitan Police Department to surrender himself.
He loudly begged the police to arrest him quickly and confessed every single one of his crimes in exhaustive detail.
After hearing the news, Hayasaka rushed back to headquarters. Seeing Nakano sitting in the interrogation room with his shoulders hunched and eyes darting around nervously, she frowned.
"He looked like this when he turned himself in?"
"Yeah. He kept rambling about someone trying to kill him and demanded that we protect him." Miwako had been about to leave work when she saw the man kneeling outside police headquarters begging to be arrested.
Smiling bitterly, she shrugged. "I'm guessing he snapped mentally after all the murders. The moment he saw me, he just kept banging his head on the ground."
Looking at the killer in such a miserable state, Hayasaka couldn't help sighing inwardly. Taking out her phone, she dialed Onizawa's number.
The call connected after three seconds, his voice sounding as though he had just woken up.
"Inspector, did I wake you?"
"It's fine. Has there been progress in the case?"
"Yes. The killer, Keisuke Nakano, turned himself in at headquarters."
"He surrendered? I understand. I'll head over immediately."
"No need. You should rest properly. Leave things here to us."
"Alright then. Sorry for the trouble."
After hanging up, Ritsu stood at the street corner not far from police headquarters. Casually tossing his mask and baseball cap into a trash bin, he rubbed his stomach with one hand before walking into the nearby fast-food restaurant.
He had barely eaten anything all day.
And now he was starving.